Odemwingie omitted from tour squad

Peter Odemwingie has been left out of West Brom’s squad for their tour of Austria as he nears an exit from The Hawthorns.

The Nigerian is widely expected to depart the club ahead of the new Premier League season after unsuccessfully attempting to force a move to QPR on January transfer deadline day.

Odemwingie went on to feature sparingly after the incident and manager Steve Clarke admitted towards the end of the season that the club’s fans’ treatment of the striker had prevented him from playing.

West Brom will head out to Austria this week, where they will face German side Hannover and local club Gleisdorf, and have included new signing Nicolas Anelka in the 25-man party as well as midfield pair Zoltan Gera and George Thorne, who are recovering from long-term knee injuries.

And the club’s fitness coach Matt Green is delighted with how the squad is shaping up following a behind-closed-doors 4-0 win over Tamworth at the weekend.

“This is as good a shape as I’ve seen them as a group,” he told the club’s official website.

“Pre-season is all about laying the foundations for the players to go on and express themselves technically and tactically in the games throughout the season.

“We do all we can now to prepare them physically for the start of the campaign.

“Last year we did a lot of good work in August and thankfully started well. We will make sure we deliver the same standard of work to them.”